Ann Hansen is a former member of Direct Action, an underground anarchist group active in the 1980s, who presently lives as a writer, farmer and public speaker in the Kingston area. On August 3, 2012, Ann was arrested and had her parole suspended for ‘unauthorized associations and political activity’ in the context of growing anti-prison organizing in Kingston, Canada’s prison capital. Ann, with the advice of her lawyer, chose to not publicize her arrest until after her parole hearing. On October 30, the Parole Board canceled her parole suspension and released her on stricter conditions. This is her first public statement regarding her arrest and imprisonment.

On August 3, I was at my home near Kingston, Ontario, sitting in a lawn chair after supper when out of the corner of my eye I saw a line of black SUVs speeding towards our driveway. With a sinking feeling, I realized one of my reoccurring fears as a parolee was becoming a reality. Four SUVs turned into our driveway, slammed on their brakes and out hopped about six to eight cops from the Ontario Provincial Police dressed in full Darth Vader gear with a couple of them brandishing automatic weapons for full dramatic effect. As I struggled to stay calm, I noticed the acronym ROPE (Re-Offenders and Parole Enforcement Squad) in bright yellow blazoned across their bullet proof vests.

They parked askew all over the driveway, and while a couple of them with their fully automatic rifles took positions at the top of our property, the rest walked rapidly up to where I was and handcuffed me without saying a word. I asked the one female cop what this was all about and she said my parole was being suspended.

I spent a few days at the local remand center, Quinte Detention Centre, before a new parole officer (my regular parole officer was suddenly replaced) and a Security Intelligence Officer (SIO) from Correctional Service Canada (CSC) came to see me for a post suspension interview. They spent an hour and a half interrogating me and trying to intimidate me into giving them the names of anyone involved in EPIC (End the Prison Industrial Complex) or any other anti-prison activists, as well as information about any possible “bombings and arsons” which the SIO warned me I would be responsible for “if it all went sideways.” Needless to say, they were not satisfied when I told them I didn’t have names for them. The interview would have made a hilarious Monty Python script with the SIO comparing me at times to Ghandi and then in the next breath to James Holmes, the “joker” who killed twelve people during the Batman film in Colorado. The outcome of the interview wasn’t quite so hilarious.Continue reading →

Hey there! Some folks from Utah are selling t-shirts to help benefit local former political prisoner Jordan Halliday (http://supportjordan.org/) with any post release financing he may need. There is an etsy account set up with all the proceeds going to help pay off remaining legal fees and just help him out in general. The shirts are only $12 and have a variety of political messages and designs. Please visit the site and pass the word on. http://www.etsy.com/shop/resistancearmy#

On June 2nd we lost Geronimo Ji Jaga Pratt, who left us a legacy of strength and inspiration in the struggle for liberation. For more information about his life and his recent passing, see the links below.

A Scottish anarchist who spent time in General Franco’s jails after smuggling explosives to assassinate the dictator has accused the Spanish government of ignoring his attempts to receive recognition as a Francoist victim.

Stuart Christie, 65, was caught with plastic explosives after picking them up from fellow anarchists in Paris and crossing the Spanish border with them taped to his body. In his autobiography, he said of the journey: “With the plastic explosive strapped to me, my body was improbably misshapen. The only way to disguise myself was with the baggy woollen jumper my granny had knitted to protect me from the biting Clydeside winds. At the risk of understatement, I looked out of place on the Mediterranean coast in August.”

Christie wants the 20-year prison sentence, handed down to him as an 18-year-old by a Francoist council of war in 1964, to be overturned.

He served three years before the Franco regime buckled to public protests in Britain and released him.

“I’m trying to push the Spanish government into openly condemning Francoist legal decisions as illegitimate and, in particular, to overturn the verdicts of the military tribunals,” he said.Continue reading →

Interview with environmental activist and former international political prisoner Tre Arrow. Tre talks about his current activities in Portland and his past efforts to preserve forest eco-systems. He recounts his participation in the Eagle Creek and Tillimook forest campaigns. Tre became well known for standing on the ledge of the US forest Service building in downtown Portland for 11 days. He then ran for congress for the Green Party and got over 15,000 votes.

Tre became a suspect for the Ross Island Sand and Gravel arson after his co-defendant bragged to his girlfriend, who told her dad, who told the FBI. While a fugitive on the FBI’s most wanted list, Tre crossed Canada and was arrested in Vancouver. Tre fought his extradition and lack of raw vegan food in jail with a series of hunger strikes. His weight dropped to around 80 pounds at one point.

Tre served his prison time and is currently on parole. He remains committed to social and ecological justice.